Image courtesy of Amazon.comFor the month of October we will be participating in a Global Read Aloud campaign. This is a world wide effort to get kids talking about books world-wide. You can find out more information at the link below http://www.theglobalreadaloud.com/

This is a high interest story that our students can relate to. I sent home a note to inform you , but I wanted to make sure to put it on the Weebly as well should anyone have forgotten to ring the note home. There is some high school content and language that is not appropriate for younger middle school children, but it is age and grade level appropriate for our students. I hope that my students learn that all books can be written from a different perspective and that through talking about books with others it can expand your own views as well.

Winner of the 2014 Pura Belpré Author Award

In Meg Medina’s compelling new novel, a Latina teen is targeted by a bully at her new school — and must discover resources she never knew she had.Yes, this book may have a swear word in its title, but please do not let that stop you from using it with students. This incredible story of what bullying can do to a person is one that is meant to be shared and discussed.

Strong Female CharactersBy Ken C.TOP 1000 REVIEWER on March 2, 2013Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )Talk about a provocative title! YAQUI DELGADO WANTS TO KICK YOUR ASS grabs teen readers' attention in a hurry. As you might infer, it is a book about bullying -- not "another" book about bullying, but "a" book about it. Meaning? I think it stands above the others I've read. Strong, strong characterization. And, in a book curiously devoid of male characters (spare two minor players), Medina's book speaks to the power of women, especially when they work together.

The protagonist here is Piddy Sanchez, a Latina girl who lands in a new high school when her single mother tries to improve their living quarters. Piddy's arrival draws notice from the wrong person in a hurry. In fact, the first line of the book is the title of the book. The words come from Vanesa, a friend of Yaqui's. It takes another girl to explain the threat more clearly. The mysterious (but not for long!) Yaqui has decided that Piddy is stuck up, shakes her booty too much, and has eyes for her boyfriend. Of course, Piddy wouldn't know Yaqui's boyfriend if she fell over him, but that, apparently, is beside the point.

From this simple beginning, a psychological net begins to close on the mind of Piddy. She begins to feel like prey, an innocent creature that can hear but not see the trouble that stalks her. Later, Yaqui appears with a bang (think Piddy's head, maybe), and the intimidation takes on a whole new dimension. Piddy is so traumatized that she fears going outside, never mind to school. She becomes the hunted, the haunted, and the hated through no fault of her own.